Mower.



H. NORMAN.

MOWER.

APPLICATION FILED APR.24,1908.

922,319., Patented May 18,1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

W 58858 I a $3 INVENTOI? HEIWAED NDEMAN ATTORNEYS- H. NORMAN.

MOWER.

APPLICATION FILED APR.24,1908.

Patented May 18, I909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

mwe/vr o/r HOWARD NURMAN N3 kw, wm m I I! V %& g? m. F: .7 XI 7! I! WITNESSES aw ATTORNEYS- H. NORMAN.

MOWER.

9- APPLICATION FILED APR. 24, 1908. Patented May 3 SHEETS-8EEET 3.

MT 53858 HWENTOH 6926 I HuwARn NORMAN W ATTORNEYS "THE rvonms Fsrsns co, WASHINDTDN, 0v 0 HOWARD NORMAN, OF FOWLER, KANSAS.

MOWER.

' Specification of Letters Patent.-

Patented M'ay.18,- 1909.

Application filed April 24, 1908'. Serial No. 428,899.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HOWARD NORMAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Fowler, in the county of Meade and State of Kansas, have made certain new anduseful Improvements in Mowers, of which the following is a specification.

This inventionrelates to mowers wherein the cutter bars are carried ahead of the team, and has a main frame mounted on wheels and driven by horse power, and on this is. mount-.

it will flex at the middle, that is, at the joint between the finger bars and the nose or point of the frame, and the frame is also mounted on pivots transversely, whereby the cutting gear may be raised out of action, and the cutting devices are of the ground.

The construction will be more fully apparfree to follow the inequalities ent from the followingdescription and the accompanying drawings, in whichv Figure 1 1s aplan of the machine. Fig. 2 18 a side elevation. Fig. 3 is a detail in plan,

showing the driving connections to the cutter bars. Fig. 4 is a detail in side elevation of the tilting platform which supportsthe engine. Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional detail of the ball and socket'connections between the point of the tilting frame and the finger bars. Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional detail showing the same, and also the shoes and cutter bars.

The frame of the machine comprises a longitudinal middle beam 6 at the front end of which are diverging arms 7 forming a yoke. The rear end is mounted on a caster wheel 8 with a T head 9 connected by rods 10 to treadle levers 11, by which themachi-ne is steered, the drivers seat 12 being mounted on the beam, as well-as thedouble-tree 13 to which the draft animals are hitched, one on each side of the beam. The front ends of the arms 7 are mounted on the crank axle 14 carried on wheels 15. Levers 16 are secured to the axle and have latches engaging notched segments 17 on the arms, whereby the frontend of the frame may be raised or lowered.

A tilting platform 18 is pivotally mounted by trunnions 19 on bosses 20 .on the inner sides of the arms 7, and is shaped to fit and swingbetween the arms of the yoke. Its angle or tilt is varied b y means of a rearwardly extending lever 21 having alatch 22 engaging a notched segment 23 projecting upwardlyfrom the beam 6 through aslot in the lever.

The front endof the platformtapers to a nose or point 24 at the median line and this articulates with the inner ends. of a pair of laterally of ball and socket joints 26, the sockets being formed by castings rigid with the point of the platform, and the fingerbars havingiballs. at the end. A pair of concave shoes 27 are fixed to the ends of the finger bars at one edge and curve under the joints, being spaced at the inner edges to allow the res ective finger bars to vibratein a vertical p ane to follow uneven ground. The'fronts of the. shoes taper to round ends whichlare set in a pointed ferrule 28, one end being fixed to the ferrule bya set screw 29 and the other end being free to turn in the ferrule. At their outerrends the finger bars have dividing extending finger. bars 25 by'means.

shoes 3O. In order to maintain the finger bars in perpendicular alinement with the longitudinal axis ofthe machine, the shoes 30 are connected to the front ends of bars3l, the rear ends of which are pivotally con nected to the lower endsv of crank arms 32, depending from and rigid with the outer ends of the axle 14. To hang or carry the outer ends of the finger bars on the tilting platform 18, a cross bar 33 is provided, supported. at the middle'byposts 34 standingon the' platform near thefrontend thereof. At each end this bar has -a pair of depending bars 34, between which the bars 31 ass or 'arelocated and are confined vertica 1y between set screws 35 in cross pieces 36; and the set screwslimit the vertical vibration of the bars 31 and consequently of the outer shoes onthe finger bars, the whole forming hangers for thefinger bars by means of which they are swung up or down with the tilting platform: A gasolene engine is mounted on said latform, as well as a water tank 37 and gaso ene tank 38 andthe engine has av vertical shaft with afipulley 39 connected-by belt 40 to a pulley 41 having a wrist pin 42 connected by link 43 with the rear end of a bent lever 44 fulcrumed. at 45 on the platform. The front end of this lever is bolted to a casting 46 having a pair of sockets 47 on opposite sides, which receive balls 48 at the inner ends of the cutter bars 49, which reciprocate on the finger bars in the usual way.

The tilt of the finger bars and closeness of cut is controlled by a hand lever 50, fulcrumed on the rear end of the lever 21 and connected by rod 51 to a bent lever 52 fulcrumed on cross bar 33, connected by rod 53 to the ferrule 28.

In operation, the machine is drawn by the team in an obvious manner, cutting in front as the machine advances. The engine drives the cutter bars by means of the transmission devices described and illustrated. The ball and socket joints allow vertical vibration incident to uneven ground.

To lift the cutters temporarily out of action, the lever 21 is depressed and latched down. This swings the latform on its trunnions 19 and holds the inger bars free from the ground, the ends being supported by the cross bar 33 and hangers depending therefrom, which lift the bars 31 and outside shoes.

When it is desired to travel across country, and additional elevation of the bars is required, the cranked axles are swun down by the levers 16, raising the front end of the whole main frame. At the same time, the crank arms 32, being ri id with the axles, are thereby swung forwar and the han er bars 34 having already lifted the brace ars 31 above the crank pins32 the forward swing of the cranks causes the bars 31 to be ti ped up on the fulcrum formed by the limit bolts 35, thus raising the outer ends of the finger bars much higher than the inner ends thereof.

I I claim 1. In a mowing machine, the combination of a wheeled frame having spaced arms at the front, a tilting platform pivotally mounted between the arms, cutting devices extending oppositely from the middle of the platform at the front thereof, and means carried by the platform to operate said de vices.

2. In a mowing machine, the combination of a frame having a median longitudinal beam with diverging arms at the front end, and a caster wheel and draft devices at the rear end, a crank axle extending across at the front ends of the arms and rovidedwith wheels supporting the same, evers to turn the axle, and cutting devices carried at one end of the frame and extending across the same.

3. In a mowing machine, the combination of a wheeled frame, a tilting platform at the front end thereof, a pair of cutting mechanisms flexibly connected at their inner ends to the front end of the platform at the middle thereof and'extending laterally in front of the frame, hangers sup orted on the latform to operate said mechanisms.

- "4:: In a mowing machine, the combination of a wheeled frame, a tilting platform at the front .end thereof, tapered forwardly to a oint at the middle line, finger bars flexibly oined to the oint of the platform and extending latera y in opposite directions therefrom, reciprocating cutter bars on the finger bars, and means carriedby the platform and flexibly joined to the cutter bars to operate the same. in Q 5. In a mowing machine, the combination of a Wheeled frame, a tilting platform at the front end thereof, a pair of finger bars extending across the front of the machine and having ball and socket joints with-the'platform, reciprocating cutter bars on the finger bars, and means carried by the platform to operate the cutter bars, including a laterally vibrating lever having ball and socket joints with the ends of the cutter bars.

6. The. combination of a vertically tilting platform and means to carry the same, the platform having a point at the middle, of a pair of finger bars jointed to the point of the platform and extending laterally on opposite sides thereof, shoes under the inner ends of the finger bars, reciprocating cutter bars, means carried on the platform to operate the same, and means mounted on the platform V to sup ort the outer ends of the finger bars, 100

7. 'I he combination of a vertically tilting platform and means to carry the same, a air of cutting mechanisms including finger ars and cutter bars flexibly connected at their inner ends to the middle of the platform, a 105 cross bar supported on the latform, hangers depending at the outer en s of the bar, con

nections between the hangers and the outer ends of the finger bars, and means carried by the platform to operate the cutter bars.

8. The combination of a wheeledframe having an axle at the front provided with depending crank arms, a tilting platformon the front of the frame, a air of cutting mechanisms including finger bars and cutter bars supported at their inner ends by the latform, bars connecting the outer ends of the finger bars and the crank arms, and hangers supported on the platform and loosely con- 7 nected to the bars to support the outer ends of the finger bars. I V

9. The combination of a wheeled frame, a downwardly inclined platform at the front thereof, a pair of cutting mechanisms supported by the platform at the front thereof,

including finger bars having universal joints with the platform and shoes under the same,

and means to tilt up the finger bars, comprising an upper cross bar supported above the platform, a bent lever fulcrumed on the cross bar and connected to the shoes, and a I hand lever at the rear of the platform, connected to the bent lever.

10. The combination of a Wheeled frame having a cranked axle at the front provided with crank arms de ending at the outer ends thereof, a tilting p atform mounted on the frame and projecting downwardly and forwardly under the axle, a pair of cutting mechanisms articulated at their inner ends to the front end of the platform and having rearwardly extending bars at their outer ends connected to said crank arms, a cross bar mounted upon and above the platform and having hangers at its outer ends loosely connected to the said rearwardly extending bars, and means to operate said cutting mechanisms.

' HOWARD NORMAN.

Witnesses JOHN JOBLING, POWELL SEALOCK. 

